Territorial jurisdiction under the Negotiable Instruments Act follows cheque delivery location, and consent cannot cure lack of jurisdiction.

In a section 138 Negotiable Instruments Act prosecution, territorial jurisdiction is governed by section 142(2), which vests jurisdiction in the court within whose local limits the cheque is delivered for collection through the payee's account, and the statutory explanation treats delivery as occurring at the branch where the payee maintains the account. Because the cheque was presented through the complainant's account at ICICI Bank, Sector 128, Noida, outside Jammu's territorial limits, the Jammu court lacked inherent jurisdiction. The statutory scheme prevailed over the general rule in section 177 CrPC, and acquiescence or early participation could not confer jurisdiction. The complaint and order issuing process were therefore unsustainable.

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Issues: Whether the complaint under section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act was entertainable by the Jammu court in view of the place where the cheque was presented for collection and whether the trial magistrate could validly issue process despite the objection to territorial jurisdiction.

Analysis: Section 142(2) of the Negotiable Instruments Act confers jurisdiction only on the court within whose local limits the cheque is delivered for collection through the payee's account, and the explanation deems delivery to occur at the branch where the payee maintains the account. The cheque in question was presented through the complainant's account at ICICI Bank, Sector 128, Noida, which lay outside the territorial limits of the Jammu court. The statutory scheme overrides the general rule under section 177 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. The plea of acquiescence was rejected because participation at an early stage does not confer jurisdiction where the court lacks inherent competence, and consent cannot validate such absence of jurisdiction. In view of the want of territorial jurisdiction, the question of the procedure adopted for taking preliminary evidence was not examined.

Conclusion: The complaint could not be entertained by the Jammu court, and the order issuing process was unsustainable; the challenge succeeded in favour of the petitioner.

Ratio Decidendi: In a prosecution under section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, territorial jurisdiction is determined by section 142(2), and a court lacking inherent territorial jurisdiction cannot acquire it by consent, participation, or acquiescence.

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